Aldi to Charge for Reusable Fruit and Veg Bags

To cut down on single-use plastic waste, Aldi is trialling reusable bags for loose fruit and vegetables in selected stores.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ll be aware how much of an issue plastic waste is having to the environment.

Supermarkets are doing their bit to cut down on plastic, as a huge amount ends up in our houses are brought home from there.

Each of the supermarkets are making pledges to cut down on plastic and packaging on their products, and Aldi is the latest supermarket to make a visible sign that things are changing.

Aldi reusable bags for loose fruit and veg

From the end of November 2019, all 250 stores in Scotland, the North of England and the Midlands will have reusable drawstring bags on offer.

The reusable bag will replace the free single-use plastic bags.

But the new reusable bags for the veg are no longer free. Aldi will be charging 25p for each one sold.

The bags are made of recycled plastic, can be washed, and used again and again, so you’re going to get value out of it.

However, the bags work out more expensive than the other ones they sell.

Instead of getting a reusable drawstring bag for 25p, their compostable carrier bags are just 5p or get a bag for life for 9p – and they store your fruit and veg too.

While this is just a trial at the moment, Aldi believes that 113 tonnes of single-use plastic will stop being used if this is rolled out nationally.

Fritz Walleczek, managing director of corporate responsibility of Aldi, said: “We are committed to cutting the amount of plastic that Aldi and our customers use, particularly excess or single-use plastic like produce bags.

“We are hopeful that our customers in Scotland will embrace these new reusable produce bags whenever they’re buying loose fruit and veg and, together, we will be able to take more than 100 tonnes of plastic a year out of circulation.”

Reduce plastic

We have to pay for plastic bags at the supermarket, and Morrisons is even charging for paper bags.

So, will paying for another bit of plastic when we get loose fruit and veg make a difference?

Well, over a year, the extra costs may well make a dent in your budget.

The odd 25p here and there isn’t much, but if you forget to take your bags, then you’ll have to pay extra.

Of course, you could just not use any bags at all. We don’t, and it makes no difference to the loose fruit and veg we buy.

If we’re getting bananas they’re bunched together, so why put them in a bag. When we’re getting a few florets of broccoli, we put them next to each other at the checkout so they can be weighed at the same time. It’s not really a hassle.